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Stephenson BP, Velani Z, Ihász N. The effect of albinism on avian predator attack rates in eastern garter snakes. ZOOLOGY 2021; 150:125987. [PMID: 34971911 DOI: 10.1016/j.zool.2021.125987] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2021] [Revised: 12/10/2021] [Accepted: 12/20/2021] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
Albinism is a conspicuous and distinctive phenotype arising from the absence of melanin in the integument that has been documented in all major vertebrate groups. With few exceptions, albinism is rare in natural populations, suggesting that it incurs significant fitness costs as compared to wild-type phenotypes. One possible explanation for this rarity is that albinos experience higher predation risk as compared to wild-type individuals. We tested this hypothesis by comparing rates of attack by avian predators on immobile clay model proxies that mimicked wild-type and albino eastern garter snakes (Thamnophis s. sirtalis) at Bond Swamp in central Georgia, USA; two mixed pattern treatments provided intermediate phenotypes for comparison. Surprisingly, we found no difference in attack rate across all four model treatments, nor among pairs of treatments (i.e., wild-type-like vs. albino-like models). This indicates that albino garter snakes are not subject to higher predation risk from birds due to coloration alone, and that other factors (correlated pathologies of albinism, thermoregulatory challenges, mate selection) are likely to be more important in explaining the rarity of albinism in snakes and perhaps other vertebrate groups.
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Affiliation(s)
- Barry P Stephenson
- 1501 Mercer University Dr., Department of Biology, Mercer University, Macon, GA, 31207, USA.
| | - Zeshan Velani
- 1501 Mercer University Dr., Department of Biology, Mercer University, Macon, GA, 31207, USA; 3001 Mercer University Dr., Mercer University Health Sciences Center, Atlanta, GA, 30341, USA.
| | - Nikolett Ihász
- 1501 Mercer University Dr., Department of Psychology, Mercer University, Macon, GA, 31207, USA.
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2
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Banci KRS, Eterovic A, Marinho PS, Marques OAV. Being a bright snake: Testing aposematism and mimicry in a neotropical forest. Biotropica 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/btp.12831] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - André Eterovic
- Centro de Ciências Naturais e Humanas Universidade Federal do ABC Santo André Brazil
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de Solan T, Renoult JP, Geniez P, David P, Crochet PA. Looking for Mimicry in a Snake Assemblage Using Deep Learning. Am Nat 2020; 196:74-86. [DOI: 10.1086/708763] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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4
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Kikuchi DW, Waldron SJ, Valkonen JK, Dobler S, Mappes J. Biased predation could promote convergence yet maintain diversity within Müllerian mimicry rings of Oreina leaf beetles. J Evol Biol 2020; 33:887-898. [PMID: 32202678 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13620] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2019] [Revised: 02/10/2020] [Accepted: 03/15/2020] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
Müllerian mimicry is a classic example of adaptation, yet Müller's original theory does not account for the diversity often observed in mimicry rings. Here, we aimed to assess how well classical Müllerian mimicry can account for the colour polymorphism found in chemically defended Oreina leaf beetles by using field data and laboratory assays of predator behaviour. We also evaluated the hypothesis that thermoregulation can explain diversity between Oreina mimicry rings. We found that frequencies of each colour morph were positively correlated among species, a critical prediction of Müllerian mimicry. Predators learned to associate colour with chemical defences. Learned avoidance of the green morph of one species protected green morphs of another species. Avoidance of blue morphs was completely generalized to green morphs, but surprisingly, avoidance of green morphs was less generalized to blue morphs. This asymmetrical generalization should favour green morphs: indeed, green morphs persist in blue communities, whereas blue morphs are entirely excluded from green communities. We did not find a correlation between elevation and coloration, rejecting thermoregulation as an explanation for diversity between mimicry rings. Biased predation could explain within-community diversity in warning coloration, providing a solution to a long-standing puzzle. We propose testable hypotheses for why asymmetric generalization occurs, and how predators maintain the predominance of blue morphs in a community, despite asymmetric generalization.
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Affiliation(s)
- David W Kikuchi
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA.,Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Centre of Excellence in Evolutionary Research, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland.,Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Samuel J Waldron
- Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Centre of Excellence in Evolutionary Research, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland.,Molecular Evolutionary Biology, Department of Biology, Universität Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Janne K Valkonen
- Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Centre of Excellence in Evolutionary Research, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland
| | - Susanne Dobler
- Molecular Evolutionary Biology, Department of Biology, Universität Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Johanna Mappes
- Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Centre of Excellence in Evolutionary Research, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland.,Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
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Akcali CK, Pérez-Mendoza HA, Kikuchi DW, Pfennig DW. Multiple models generate a geographical mosaic of resemblance in a Batesian mimicry complex. Proc Biol Sci 2019; 286:20191519. [PMID: 31530146 PMCID: PMC6784714 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2019.1519] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2019] [Accepted: 08/22/2019] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Batesian mimics-benign species that receive protection from predation by resembling a dangerous species-often occur with multiple model species. Here, we examine whether geographical variation in the number of local models generates geographical variation in mimic-model resemblance. In areas with multiple models, selection might be relaxed or even favour imprecise mimicry relative to areas with only one model. We test the prediction that model-mimic match should vary with the number of other model species in a broadly distributed snake mimicry complex where a mimic and a model co-occur both with and without other model species. We found that the mimic resembled its model more closely when they were exclusively sympatric than when they were sympatric with other model species. Moreover, in regions with multiple models, mimic-model resemblance was positively correlated with the resemblance between the model and other model species. However, contrary to predictions, free-ranging natural predators did not attack artificial replicas of imprecise mimics more often when only a single model was present. Taken together, our results suggest that multiple models might generate a geographical mosaic in the degree of phenotype matching between Batesian mimics and their models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher K. Akcali
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
- North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, Raleigh, NC, USA
| | - Hibraim Adán Pérez-Mendoza
- Laboratorio de Ecología Evolutiva y Conservación de Anfibios y Reptiles, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Iztacala, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Mexico, Tlalneplanta, Mexico
| | - David W. Kikuchi
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - David W. Pfennig
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
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Coombs G. Does partial concealment influence predation attempts on small model snakes in South Africa? AFR J HERPETOL 2019. [DOI: 10.1080/21564574.2019.1645745] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Gareth Coombs
- Independent Researcher, Grahamstown, Eastern Cape, South Africa
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Mochida K, Sasai T, Kadota Y, Nishikawa M, Itou MM, Toda M. Thermal Reaction Norms of Locomotor Performance in Lacertid Lizards of the Genus Takydromus. CURRENT HERPETOLOGY 2018. [DOI: 10.5358/hsj.37.114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Koji Mochida
- Tropical Biosphere Research Center, University of Ryukyus, Nishihara, Okinawa 903-0213, JAPAN
- Department of Biology, Keio University, 4-1-1 Hiyoshi, Kohoku-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa 223-8521, JAPAN
| | - Takahide Sasai
- Tropical Biosphere Research Center, University of Ryukyus, Nishihara, Okinawa 903-0213, JAPAN
- Suma Aqualife Park Kobe, Suma, Kobe, Hyogo 654-0049, JAPAN
| | - Yohei Kadota
- Department of Zoology, Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University, Sakyo-Ku, Kyoto 606-8502, JAPAN
| | - Mari Nishikawa
- Department of Zoology, Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University, Sakyo-Ku, Kyoto 606-8502, JAPAN
| | - Makoto M. Itou
- Department of Zoology, Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University, Sakyo-Ku, Kyoto 606-8502, JAPAN
| | - Mamoru Toda
- Tropical Biosphere Research Center, University of Ryukyus, Nishihara, Okinawa 903-0213, JAPAN
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Aposematism and crypsis are not enough to explain dorsal polymorphism in the Iberian adder. ACTA OECOLOGICA 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.actao.2017.11.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
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Kaito T, Ota H, Toda M. The evolutionary history and taxonomic reevaluation of the Japanese coral snake, Sinomicrurus japonicus(Serpentes, Elapidae), endemic to the Ryukyu Archipelago, Japan, by use of molecular and morphological analyses. J ZOOL SYST EVOL RES 2017. [DOI: 10.1111/jzs.12162] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Takuma Kaito
- Graduate School of Engineering and Science; University of the Ryukyus; Nishihara Okinawa Japan
| | - Hidetoshi Ota
- Institute of Natural and Environmental Science; University of Hyogo, and Museum of Nature and Human Activities; Sanda Hyogo Japan
| | - Mamoru Toda
- Tropical Biosphere Research Center; University of the Ryukyus; Nishihara Okinawa Japan
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